Satoshi Nakamoto created Bitcoin in 2009. He mysteriously vanished in 2011, with billions to his name | CBC Documentaries (2024)

Paul Kemp

· Posted: Nov 01, 2023 9:40 PM EDT | Last Updated: November 3, 2023

Paul Kemp is the director of Searching for Satoshi: The Mysterious Disappearance of the BitcoinCreator.

Satoshi Nakamoto.

If that name is unfamiliar to you, here's what you need to know: it's not a real name, but a pseudonym for the person who invented Bitcoin in 2009. And in 2011, that person disappeared without a trace, leaving behind a personal stash of an estimated 1 million Bitcoins (valued at about $73 billion US at its peak) that hasn't been touched since.

Searching for Satoshi: The Mysterious Disappearance of the BitcoinCreator explores the facts, the fictions and the conspiracies surrounding one the world's greatest modern mysteries.

'No interference, no regulation and no surveillance'

On Jan. 3, 2009, Satoshi Nakamoto launched Bitcoin, a digital cryptocurrency built on blockchain technology. It was a completely new form of virtual money untethered to any government or financial institution.

Bitcoin was a breakthrough because it operates entirely peer-to-peer, with no need for banks, governments or intermediaries like PayPal or Visa to make monetary transactions. There is no interference, no regulation and no surveillance. Bitcoin is money that transfers directly, quite literally, from one wallet to another.

Many Bitcoin enthusiasts suggest it could be the most profound financial disruptor of all time by dismantling our dependency on financial institutions.

But just over two years after releasing Bitcoin to the world, Nakamoto disappeared.

Why do we care who Satoshi Nakamoto really is?

Nakamoto's invention is unquestionably significant. At first considered a rogue and volatile digital commodity, Bitcoin has gained such value that it can no longer be ignored by the financial establishment.

Countries like Canada, the U.S., China, Japan, India and the U.K. are struggling with how to categorize and regulate Bitcoin, while some countries like El Salvador have already made it legal tender.

Bitcoin is already considered "digital gold" by many, and it could eventually become the world's most trusted currency, with many using it as a reserve currency. Only time will tell.

But there's more to people's fascination with Nakamoto than the magnitude of his invention.

When Nakamoto accumulated his estimated 1 million Bitcoins, nobody else was really mining for them. At peak market rate, those Bitcoins would have been worth an estimated $73 billion US, placing him among the top 15 wealthiest people on the planet.

Yet despite this treasury of wealth, not a single one of Nakamoto's original Bitcoins has ever moved or traded hands. Were they lost? Stolen? Or could it be that his privacy is more valuable than risking being identified when cashing out big? For many, this seemingly saint-like preservation of anonymity over financial gain gives the Bitcoin story a somewhat mystical feeling.

Nakamoto has not been heard from since May of 2011, and as his stockpile of untouched Bitcoins skyrockets in value, his myth also grows exponentially.

Brand Bitcoin

Nakamoto's disappearance and unknown identity is living testament to "brand Bitcoin" — central to its allure.

If we knew the truth behind why he disappeared — whether he is even still alive, or died of illness, suicide or murder — we could close off all narratives that could be projected onto him.

Instead, Satoshi Nakamoto has become a symbol. A godhead. He can be of any nationality or identity, and the vessel for the liberation, equity, revolution, anarchy, prosperity, redemption, independence, freedom, divinity or salvation that we seek.

Yet many still want to know: Who is Satoshi Nakamoto?

Even if you're not convinced of who Nakamoto is after watching this film, one thing is certain: you will never forget his name.